Containerships Oy opts for LNG for two newbuilds

MAY 13, 2014 — Finland's Containerships Ltd Oy and Germany's GNS Shipping/Nordic Hamburg, and Arkon Shipping say they have ordered two LNG burning dual-fuel containerships with options for two more. Containerships will be chartering the ships over the long term, the owner and technical manager will be GNS Shipping/Nordic Hamburg, while Arkon will be the commercial manager and the charter broker.

The 170 m, 1,368 TEU ships, both of which will be delivered in the course of 2016, will use liquefied natural gas (LNG) as their primary fuel also be able to burn conventional marine diesel oil/heavy fuel—hence the "dual-fuel engine-technology" label.

Containerships will thus be the first short-sea container operator in Europe to run ships on LNG. The new container ships will offer the most efficient and environmentally friendly option for transporting containers by sea, and will not only meet but exceed environmental standards in the Sulfur Emission Control Area (SECA) in which Containerships operates.

The new ships will offer the highest flexibility for 45-foot units of any containerships operating in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Each ship will accommodate up to 639 units of 45-foot containers and have a total capacity of 1,400 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). They will also be able to accommodate up to 300 refrigerated containers. Service speed will be 19 knots.